Israel's History:
1960

1960:
by Lena Silver, 2002-2003 Far West Israel Affairs VP

1960 Israel Timeline:

• March:
  Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion visits the US, where he has a private visit with President Eisenhower. The Arab states object to the meeting.
• May 11th:
  Israeli soldiers captured Adolf Eichmann in Buenos Aires. Adolph Eichmann, the Nazi war criminal, was nabbed in Argentina by Peter Malkin. Eichmann was taken to Israel where he was tried, found guilty and hung in 1962.
• July:
  The Israeli Air Force buys its first Fouga Magister jet training plane assembled in Israel under license from a French aircraft manufacturer. All parts of the plane, except the engine and instruments, are of local make.
• July:
  Egypt breaks off diplomatic relations with Iran after the Shah reiterates Iran’s de facto recognition of Israel.
• September:
  In addressing the UN, Nassar of Egypt states "The only solution to Palestine is that matters should return to the condition prevailing before the error was committed, the annulment of Israel’s existence."
• December:
  Ben-Gurion addresses the 25th World Zionist Congress and says that Orthodox Jews remaining in the Diaspora are violating a religious commandment. His remarks insult many who believe Jews could be fully observant in the Diaspora.
• 1960 USA Elections:
• Kennedy:
  "Friendship of Israel is not a partisan matter, it is a national commitment,” proposes a three point Middle East plan:
1. Declaration of friendship of all peoples in the Middle East.
2. Reaffirmation of the Tripartite Declaration of 1950.
3. The use of a White House Authority to convene a private meeting of Arab and Israeli leaders to consider their common problems.
• Nixon:
  "The preservation of the State of Israel is what I regard as one of the essential goals of the United States foreign policy."